Steven D. Krause and Charles Lowe (Eds). Invasion of the MOOCs. The Promise and Perils of Massive Open Online Courses. Parlor Press. 2014. Pages: 238

Whatever MOOCs are or are not, the heated debate they have raised among universities overnight cannot be denied. Part of the academic world is overwhelmed with anxiety and concerned about the future of traditional, brick-and-mortar universities, while at the same time the other academic wing is showing a high level of enthusiasm for new possibilities in teaching and learning.

Inspired by this sudden rise of MOOCs and the fad around  them, the authors of the book – Steven Krause (Eastern Michigan University) and Charlie Lowe (Grand Valley State University) have made a collection of 21 essays on MOOCs by professors, academics, students and observers who have first-hand experience with MOOCs and higher education. These essays aim to show the complexity of the very definition of what is (and what might in the near future be) a “MOOC,” and to go beyond the sheer polarisation into either ‘MOOCs are good’ or ‘MOOCs are bad’. Invasion of the MOOCs reflects a wide variety of impressions about MOOCs from the most recent past and projects possibilities about MOOCs for future. 

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